What Gavin Newsom's Former Mistress Has Said About Their Scandalous Relationship
California Governor Gavin Newsom has had an interesting history of relationships. Beyond his first wife, Kimberly Guilfoyle, and the women he dated afterward, the Democratic politician also had at least one affair. In 2005, while he was mayor, Newsom began a scandalous relationship with his secretary, Ruby Rippey Gibney. Although he and Kimberly Guilfoyle were not fully together at the time, his affair partner was the wife of his campaign manager, Alex Tourk. Adding insult to injury, Tourk was also his close friend.
Needless to say, the illicit relationship was one of Newsom's most controversial moments and became the talk of the state when it was exposed in 2007. It ended Gibney's marriage and served as ammunition for the GOP against the politician during his 2018 gubernatorial run. Several Republican political figures claimed that the affair was sexual harassment and should be discussed within the Me Too movement because he had been Gibney's boss.
In response, Gibney took to Facebook to speak about her relationship with the politician: "I fully support the Me Too movement," she wrote. "In this particular instance, however, I am doubtful that it applies." Gibney emphasized that she was 33 years old at the time, married, and a mother, fully capable of making her own decisions. She then shed light on her mind frame at the time, revealing her actions had stemmed from her personal problems.
Gibney said she was self-destructive and drank too much
Beyond taking responsibility for her part in the scandal, Ruby Rippey Gibney explained that she had been dealing with alcoholism and self-sabotaging behaviors at the time of the affair. Interestingly, Gavin Newsom also blamed alcohol for his poor judgment. After admitting to being indiscreet, he declared that he had decided to stop drinking, despite being the founder of the PlumpJack Winery. He then began working with Mimi Silbert, the CEO of one of California's most successful outpatient rehabilitation centers.
By 2018, Gavin Newsom was married to Jennifer Siebel and was back to drinking wine. He even boldly told the San Francisco Chronicle his drinking was no longer a problem: "I never went to rehab. I went to Mimi, which is a whole version of life-coach-change-get-your-act-together. Mimi said, 'Stop,' I stopped. And that was it." Unfortunately, it wasn't so simple for Gibney, who took a leave of absence for three months to be treated for alcoholism. When she came back to the office, she immediately quit her job but was paid for the months she had been away. According to Newsom's office, several of her co-workers gave up their PTO so she could be paid.
Expectedly, this brought whispers, and many suspected the mayor was simply trying to pay off his ex-mistress. However, following an investigation, City Attorney Dennis Herrera stated that the payment didn't break any laws. He added, however, that they couldn't "find another instance where, as here, an employee received approval by the controller for payment under the CIP after she indicated her intent to resign from city employment" (via San Francisco Chronicle). Despite everything, the scandal became a catalyst for change for Ruby Rippey Gibney. She quit drinking, started anew, and found love again.